U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIORBUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
Feature Story

BLM & partners build collaborative education strategy

BLM-Alaska currently provides environmental education/interpretation/youth engagement programs to the public through the Campbell Creek Science Center, Arctic Interagency Visitor Center, Glennallen Field Office, and Anchorage Field Office.

The Alaska Leadership Team discussed the decreased funding for those programs and how other agencies are facing similar situations. They decided to explore ways to maintain the current level of programs and increase BLM presence in rural communities through partnership opportunities with other federal and state agencies and NGOs with resource conservation/management missions.

A team was assembled to develop a statewide education/interpretation/youth engagement strategy. This would involve partner input and incorporate the current programs offered by BLM-Alaska, continue current partnerships, and create new partnerships to increase capacity for BLM-Alaska and their partners.

The team met internally to identify current programs offered, ways to expand certain programs statewide through support of the CCSC, current and possible partners, and mutual goals/objectives.

BLM-Alaska and its education partners from around the state met on March 12 to explore partnership opportunities in the education/interpretation/youth engagement arenas. The partner outreach meeting was held at the Anchorage District Office, with BLM field offices and partners in Fairbanks and Glennallen participating via videoconference.

While this effort began several months ago, BLM and its partners view sequestration as an added incentive to pool resources and build on one another’s successes. Both private and public sector partners agreed the bite of budget cuts will mean working together as never before to bring youth into the outdoors, promote stewardship, and engage youth in the natural sciences.

BLM-Alaska is hosting the effort as a way to advance its environmental education/interpretation/youth engagement strategy. A key part of this strategy is to expand existing partnerships and provide a forum for agencies and NGOs to meet, share successes and ideas for future successes, and build a collaborative framework for youth education and engagement in the future.